You are reading

Long-Awaited Daycare Center Opens in Astoria, Enrollment is Now Open

High Five Daycare has opened an Astoria center at 23-81 21st Street

Nov. 7, 2022 By Max Murray

The owners of High Five Daycare in Sunnyside have opened their long-awaited Astoria location.

The Astoria center, founded by Jonathan Li, is located at 23-81 21st street and it provides local families with quality childcare in a neighborhood known for a shortage of top-tier providers and long wait lists.

Li, the executive director, and the staff at High Five’s new facility come with years of experience and a history of providing quality care. The company operates two other centers—one in Sunnyside and the other in Woodside.

The 21st Street center is located near Astoria Park in a brand-new space that provides a tranquil learning environment. The school also has an outdoor play area for children to engage in gross motor activity skills.

The center serves children from 12 months to 4 years with private care and 3K services.

A classroom at High Five Daycare in Astoria

High Five offers private full-time and part-time care between the hours of 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. The center also provides parents with the option of early drop off and extended day pick up for working parents. The staff also offers healthy and nutritious menus, served daily. Stroller parking is also available.

Children enrolled in the private 2s program get priority for the free 3k program that runs from 8:30 a.m. – 2:50 p.m. Early drop-off and extended day options for 3K students include rigorous after school options that include STEM, art, and language courses.

The students who have already enrolled at the center come from a variety of ethnic backgrounds.

“Our school already reflects the culturally diverse Astoria neighborhood with students from Brazil, Mexico, France, Italy, and Canada,” said Jessica Alonso, the school’s education director.

The center implements a Reggio Emilia inspired Emergent and Inquiry based approach to learning that follows the children’s interest and reflects their culture and community.

This progressive approach changes the roles of teachers and students. Teachers become researchers, observers, and facilitators as they explore along with children, and assist children in taking ownership of their learning and constructing their own knowledge.

“Our teachers facilitate and create a space where the children can explore materials and celebrate the process rather than the result,” Alonso said. “This approach highlights multi-sensory explorations, loose parts, open-ended natural materials, and various forms of expression including process art shaping children to become problem solvers, critical thinkers and leaders in our community.”

For more information on High Five Daycare or to enroll a child, please click here.

A classroom at High Five Daycare in Astoria

High Five Daycare in Astoria

email the author: news@queenspost.com
No comments yet

Leave a Comment
Reply to this Comment

All comments are subject to moderation before being posted.


The reCAPTCHA verification period has expired. Please reload the page.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Recent News

Fall fun in western Queens: Your guide to the best seasonal events

Aug. 29, 2025 By Jessica Militello

With beach days and summer BBQs behind us, the start of September rings in the start of magnificent Fall foliage, Halloween and more fun activities that come with the start of Autumn, including a list of Fall events in the area. From apple picking to seasonal ciders and more, there is tons to explore in the community. From Mystic Markets to scary movie meet-ups and more, here is a list of Fall events you do not want to miss.

A hidden gem in Sunnyside: Bistro Punta Sal blends Peruvian and Italian flavors

Aug. 29, 2025 By Jessica Militello

On a quiet street in Sunnyside, Bistro Punta Sal has its French doors wide open, letting the late August breeze emanate throughout the space, which is ornate with flowers, paintings and an array of tables and chairs for intimate dinners with friends or a romantic date night. The cozy restaurant, located at 45-51 46th St., is a hidden gem in the neighborhood that is just waiting to be discovered, as the sights and aromas of the restaurant invite guests in. 

Off-duty paramedic spots South Richmond Hill two-alarm house fire that injures nine firefighters, two civilians on Friday morning: FDNY

Nine firefighters were injured, two of them seriously, and two civilians sustained minor injuries during a two-alarm house fire in South Richmond Hill on Friday morning, but it could have been worse if not for the actions of an off-duty veteran EMT.

Paramedic Craig Biscuiti was driving to work when he noticed a column of thick black smoke and heavy flames coming from the first floor of a two-story home at 95-36 111th St. just before 7:10 a.m.

Astoria doctor sentenced to more than two decades in prison for rape and sexual abuse: DA

An Astoria doctor was sentenced to 24 years in prison on Thursday in Queens Supreme Court for raping unconscious acquaintances and sexually abusing hospital patients.

Dr. Zhi Alan Cheng, 35, of Broadway, pleaded guilty on June 30 to four counts of rape in the first degree and three counts of sexual abuse in the first degree in satisfaction of the consolidated indictments against him. He additionally entered an Alford plea to one count of sexual abuse. The defendant — a former gastroenterologist at New York-Presbyterian Queens Hospital — recorded the abuse of his unconscious victims with his cell phone in both his Astoria apartment and at the hospital.